Lateef Fagbemi: LGA bosses who misuse council funds risk jail term

Lateef Fagbemi, attorney-general of the federation and minister of justice, says chairpersons who tamper with the LGA funds would be prosecuted.

Fagbemi spoke in Abuja on Thursday at the 2024 annual conference of the National Association of Judiciary Correspondents (NAJUC).

The AGF delivered a paper titled ‘Aftermath of supreme court judgment on local government financial Autonomy: What next?’

Fagbemi said the supreme court judgment on LGA autonomy was meant to equip the councils to carry out their responsibilities effectively.

The AGF said any debt incurred by the state governments should not be shared with the LGAs.

The minister said misuse of LGA funds by governors amounts to gross misconduct, which, according to him, is impeachable.

“By the July 11, 2024, judgment of the supreme court, which granted financial autonomy to LGAs in the country, any governor who tampers with the finances of the LGAs in his state is seen to have committed a gross misconduct, which is an impeachable offence,” he said.

“If they (LGA chairpersons) choose to tamper with public funds and fail to deliver on their constitutional mandates, they risk going to jail. The trust placed in them must not be betrayed.

“Primary education must be accessible to every child. Pregnant women and infants must receive quality healthcare, and the vulnerable in the society must benefit from sustainable welfare programmes.”

Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, chief justice of Nigeria (CJN), said the judiciary and the media must occupy complementary roles in the development of the society.

Kekere-Ekun, represented by Abdulaziz Olumo, the secretary of the National Judicial Council (NJC), said the judiciary relies on the media for ethical reportage to enhance public confidence in their work.